Funnel Runners News

[p]Hey Runners! 👋[/p][p]Hope you guys are doing well.[/p][p]Today, we will explore a little bit about our repair system and the tools that are necessary to interact with it. We will also see a little bit of our gadgets and how they can help you during gameplay![/p][p][/p][p]Are you new around here? Don’t worry, quick recap:[/p][p]In Funnel Runners you have ~20 minutes to loot the city, fix the van, and escape before the F5 reaches you. You can do it solo, or with up to 7 friends, creating ultra-coop chaos.[/p][p][/p][p]👉 Join here: Funnel Runners Discord [/p][hr][/hr][h2]The Repair System[/h2][p]As mentioned before, our game loop revolves around the fact that you and your team need to fix the VAN that broke down, before the end tornado catches up to you guys! The van can break down in many ways: tyres can be flat, fuses blown, fuel empty, oil low, and much more. [/p][p]Each of these problems will require specific tools to be fixed, and it's your objective to find them in the city! Some will even require more than one tool, for example, the tires. [/p][p]To change a tire, you will need a Scissor jack, a toolbox, and, of course, a new tire. [/p][p][/p][p]However, finding the tools will not automatically fix the problem; you must bring it back to the van, interact with the broken part, and properly replace it by winning minigames that rely mostly on your response time being fast and reliable, even under pressure![/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]Tools, Gadgets, and Consumables[/h2][p]In the game, we have multiple items, and to make them a little easier to section for us developers, they are divided into 4 main sections: Tools, Gadgets, Collectables, and Consumables.[/p]

• [p]Tools are all items that are needed to fix the van; they are key items that are prioritized when spawning the items in the map. Ex: Tires, Fuses, Battery, Scissor Jack, etc.[/p]
• [p]Gadgets are items that can help the player in some way, but don't directly relate to fixing the van, and are not essential to win the game. Ex: Umbrella, Crowbar, Defibrillator, etc.[/p]
• [p]Consumables are items that players can consume to give them some kind of effect, like healing, a boost in stamina, or velocity. Ex: Health Pills, Bandages, Granola Bar, Energy Drink, etc.[/p]
• [p]Collectables are items related to tasks; usually, they serve no direct utility to gameplay besides task completion and lore exposition. Ex: Newspaper, Secret Documents, VHS Tapes, etc. [/p]

[p][/p][p]These are only some examples, and we have much more in the game, but we don't want to spoil everything![/p][hr][/hr][h2]Before I go…[/h2][p]If you guys want, tell me what you want the next devlog to be about:[/p]

• [p]“Funny moments” devlog with clips/screenshots[/p]
• [p]Obstacle Systems with examples and how they work[/p]
• [p]Van Gadgets and their main uses[/p]

[p]And if you’re enjoying the progress so far, wishlisting helps a LOT. 🙏🌪️[/p]

[p]Hey Runners! 👋
Hope you guys are doing well cuz we are doing great!

This weekend, we reached an AMAZING milestone in the project, which is the 10k wishlist mark!
This is super exciting for us since we barely started marketing the game a few weeks ago.

Receiving all this attention to our project means the world to us and just gives us 100X more fuel to work hard and release the best game for you guys. [/p][p]\[We are actually in 11K now XD, so extra thank you]

So thank you all for each like, each comment, each share! Every single one of you guys mattered, and we couldn't be more grateful! [/p][hr][/hr][h2]Before I go…[/h2][p]If you guys want to know more about the game, consider joining our Discord or reading our Devlogs here on Steam! If you’re enjoying the game so far and haven't wishlist yet, please consider it, it helps a LOT. 🙏🌪️[/p]

[p]Hey Runners! 👋
Hope you guys are doing well.[/p][p]Today, let’s explore a little bit of our tornado and destruction systems, both of which are essential to gameplay, and honestly… they also gave us the most headaches during development. They’re not 100% final yet (we still want to optimise further), but they’re far enough along that I can finally talk about them properly.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Are you new around here? Don’t worry, quick recap:[/p][p]In Funnel Runners, you have ~20 minutes to loot the city, fix the van, and escape before the F5 reaches you. You can do it solo, but it’s made for co-op chaos with friends. [/p][p]👉 Join here: Funnel Runners Discord [/p][hr][/hr][h2]The Tornado System[/h2][p]The tornado system was one of the trickiest things to implement. We wanted it to feel realistic, but without doing insane physics + wind calculations that change every second (that would destroy performance fast).[/p][p]The first big step for realism was variety. Tornados can spawn in any size, from a small F1 all the way to a menacing F5. The spawning sequence tries to replicate the real formation as closely as possible. And yes, they can affect the city even if they’re not fully formed yet.
[/p][p]\[Example of some tornados with different sizes and intensities]
[/p][p]When a tornado spawns, it generates a bunch of data based on its size:[/p]

• [p]The area it affects[/p]
• [p]The maximum wind speed it will reach[/p]
• [p]The path it will take through the city (Yes, it can deviate from that path)[/p]
• [p]and a few more.[/p]

[p]The most important ones for us are the area of effect and wind speed, because those two decide how the world reacts to that tornado. There’s no reason to check if an F1 in the south is affecting a tree on the north side of town, so we only evaluate objects inside the area of effect. Every object has its own thresholds. A tree might lose leaves from an F1, but it’ll probably still stand. That same tree near an F4/F5? Different story. [/p][p]\[different levels of destruction based on the intensity of tornados/weather] [/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]The Destruction System[/h2][p]Our destruction system is completely original and coded by hand. We looked at pre-made plugins, but they were too heavy for what we wanted, so we went the “painful but worth it” route and built our own.[/p][p][/p][p]The idea is easy to understand (the implementation was not 😅):[/p][p]Each destructible asset has a resistance threshold. When it’s inside a tornado’s destruction area, it checks the current wind strength. If the wind is strong enough to pass that object’s threshold:[/p]

• [p]Dust VFX kicks in[/p]
• [p]Personalised particles/debris spawn (depends on the asset that is being destroyed, a fence and a wall will use different particles that match them)[/p]
• [p]And behind the scenes, we swap the object to a broken version (or despawn it completely)[/p]

[p]The trick is that most of the “heavy stuff” is hidden by VFX and timing, so it looks intense without killing performance.[/p][p][/p][p]To make this possible, we also had to build locations like LEGO. Houses and other areas are assembled like “puzzle pieces” that blend together seamlessly, so when things break, they break in a way that still feels natural. To assemble these correctly, we needed to create + 100 structure pieces and their broken variations.[/p][p]\[Example of some areas and the modular pieces we use to assemble them][/p][p][/p][p]A lot of our destruction relies on visual tricks + VFX, not true “pieces flying around” physics destruction. That’s how we managed to keep the game stable and optimized for mid/low-end PCs, even when 100+ assets get destroyed at the same time.[/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]Before I go…[/h2][p]If you guys want, tell me what you want the next devlog to be about:[/p]

• [p]Weather system (and how it escalates)[/p]
• [p]Repairs + tools[/p]
• [p]“Funny moments” devlog with clips/screenshots[/p]

[p]And if you’re enjoying the progress so far, wishlisting helps a LOT. 🙏🌪️[/p][p][/p][p][/p]

[p]Hey Runners! 👋
Hope you guys are doing good.[/p][p]I wanted to do a quick devlog to explain what Funnel Runners is, what we already have in the game, and what we’re trying to add in the next months until release.[/p][p]
[/p][p]If you’re new here, the goal is simple: you have ~20 minutes to loot the city, fix the van, and escape before the F5 reaches you. You can do it solo, but it’s made for co-op chaos with friends. [/p][p]👉 Join here: Funnel Runners Discord [/p][p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]The Game Today (what’s already in)[/h2][p]Currently in the game we have:[/p]

• [p]Tornados: (obviously haha) They’re the main threat and the reason you’re always on a timer. They can mess up plans fast and force you to keep moving.[/p]
• [p]12 weather patterns: Rain / Hail / Acid / Lightning, each with light/medium/heavy variants. It’s not just cosmetic, intensity changes how risky it is to be outside and how stressful repairs/looting become.[/p]
• [p]Destruction system (mid/low end PC friendly): We built our own destruction so buildings can break apart during the match without needing a crazy PC. The city changes as the storm gets worse.[/p]
• [p]20+ tools and gadgets: A bunch of different items to help you survive and solve problems. Teams can play runs differently depending on what they find and what they bring.[/p]
• [p]Semi-procedural maps: Streets stay familiar, but houses/areas change every match and item spawns are fully random, so runs don’t feel the same and you can’t just repeat one route.[/p]

[p][/p][p]And besides the content, these are the main mechanics that make the game feel like Funnel Runners:[/p]

• [p]Proximity Voice Chat: Yes, it’s in. And yes, it creates the funniest and worst moments. If you split up, you’ll sound split up… so good luck and try to not scream too much.[/p]
• [p]Repair System with QTEs: Fixing the van is not “click and done”. You actually have to do the repairs, and doing them while the storm is getting worse is where most runs become chaos.[/p]
• [p]Multiple Obtacles: There are different traps you can run into (or sometimes be pushed into) such as flaming trees and trash, power cables in the ground, and much more. [/p]
• [p]Different times of day: Time of day changes difficulty and visibility, and it makes the game feel unique.[/p]

[p][/p][hr][/hr][h2]The Game Next Steps (until release)[/h2][p]In the following months until release we are focusing a lot on optimization of course, but there are also some big mechanics we want to get into the game, such as:[/p]

• [p]Inventory System[/p]
• [p]Leveling Up System for the player[/p]
• [p]+30 Achievements[/p]
• [p]Controller Support[/p]

[p]We’ll talk more about these in the near future, some spoilers might be sent on discord. ;)[/p][hr][/hr][h2]Before I go…[/h2][p]If you guys want, tell me what you want the next devlog to be about:[/p]

1. [p]tornadoes + destruction[/p]
2. [p]weather system (and how it escalates)[/p]
3. [p]repairs + tools[/p]
4. [p]“funny moments” devlog with clips/screenshots[/p]

[p]And if you’re enjoying the progress so far, wishlisting helps a LOT. 🙏🌪️[/p]

[p]Runners, it's time to unite!
We have our own Discord server for Funnel Runners, and you are invited to join!

Join us to:[/p][p]• Get exclusive development updates[/p][p]• Share feedback and help shape the game[/p][p]• Talk directly to the developers[/p][p]• Find other runners to play with.

This is where the real chaos begins. Will you join us?
👉 Join here: Funnel Runners Discord

[/p][p]Let's do it together!
The Funnel Runners Team [/p]